Millennials get blamed for a lot of things these days—everything from avocado toast to not tipping enough—but perhaps their attitudes toward cannabis deserves some credit. One in four young Americans (ages 18-29) say they “regularly” or “occasionally” consume cannabis, according to a new Gallup Poll.
These results fall in line with the average of 22 percent of young Americans that have answered yes when asked if they “smoke marijuana” in three polls Gallup conducted from 2015 to 2017.
The poll also states that 13 percent of total Americans says they casually use cannabis—meaning millennials regularly use cannabis at twice the rate of the general public. Adults aged 50-64 and 65+ use cannabis at lower rates than both, with 11% and six percent of those age group claim they regularly or occasionally use cannabis, respectively.
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As might be expected, the poll also shows that cannabis usage is much higher in the West than other portions of the country. Whereas 12 percent of Easterners and 10% of Midwesterners claim they use cannabis, 20 percent of Westerners say they use cannabis. Of the nine states that have legalized recreational cannabis, five of them are in the West. Nearby Alaska has also legalized full adult usage of cannabis.
The data is based on telephone polling that occurred between July 1 and July 11, with a random sample of 1,033 adults throughout 50 states and the District of Columbia. Gallup reports the poll has a margin of error of plus-or-minus 4 percentage points.
